Universal sets The Odyssey’s Oscar push: Matt Damon for Best Actor, Anne Hathaway for Supporting
Universal has sorted its Oscars acting campaign for The Odyssey’s cast — the real question is who they’re steering into which categories.
Universal is wasting no time gearing up Oscar campaigns for The Odyssey, Christopher Nolan's latest attempt to best himself at the box office. If you thought Oppenheimer was a bit of a steamroller at the Academy Awards, Universal clearly fancies its chances at going even bigger this time. And if the early chat is anything to go by, they're hungry to have more actors in the hunt for those little gold statues—possibly eyeing a record to match Ryan Coogler's Sinners for most nominations ever.
The Odyssey now sits at a staggering $1.55 billion global box office, the biggest haul of Nolan’s career.
Who Universal's Backing
With a cast so stacked it's almost showing off, Universal's apparently had to do a bit of strategic shuffling to figure out which actors they're seriously pushing for recognition come Oscar night. Gold Derby reports they've finalised their submission list—so here's who's actually being put forward for acting categories:
- Matt Damon – running for Best Actor (as you’d expect, since he’s front and centre)
- Anne Hathaway – going for Best Supporting Actress
- Samantha Morton – Best Supporting Actress as well
- Tom Holland, John Leguizamo, Robert Pattinson – all up for Best Supporting Actor
Noticeably missing from that list: Zendaya (Athena), Charlize Theron (Calypso), Lupita Nyong'o (Helen of Troy/Clytemnestra), Jon Bernthal (Menelaus), Elliot Page (Sinon), and Himesh Patel (Eurylochus). Essentially, if you played a god, a spartan, or anyone whose name requires the narrator to check Wikipedia, you’re not seeing an acting push—likely because their roles weren’t large enough this time round to justify it.
The Hathaway move is worth a closer look—Universal's opted to campaign her for Best Supporting Actress rather than lead, probably to sidestep any direct clash with Julianne Moore, who's already getting serious Best Actress attention for The Debut. It’s the sort of tactical shuffling studios do every year, but it always feels a bit too much like chess with people's pay cheques.
The Numbers Game
As for box office numbers, The Odyssey has officially brought in roughly $1.55 billion worldwide, making it Nolan’s most lucrative film yet. A whopping $257 million of that came from IMAX screenings alone, making it the highest earner for IMAX in cinema history. The digital release is locked in for 17 November 2026, and for everyone still hoarding physical media, it'll be out on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray the very same day.